Atlantic 500 or motorcycle?

[ebetzs]

Will this product by Aprilia compete with the motorcycle? It seems that some people who like the convenience of a step through bike where you don't have to shift gears would be tempted to pick the Atlantic 500 over a motorcycle. This would be especially true of older riders and women. It appears that this scooter will hold it's own with many bikes.

[DELSURFINaolcom]

whats the difference if it never gets here?

[davekealey]

It IS here and I have 900 miles on mine, already, in 3 weeks. Get in line.

[Pauls 500 NYC]

I gotta call it motorcycle ... Scooter sounds kinda wimpy for such a potent machine .

[joearena]

... just don't call it wimpy.

[timbo]

Trouble is in UK at least, that Bikers are so sportsbike style obsessed, that they aren't even prepared to consider anything that remotely looks like a scooter. Instead they buy crazy high powered bikes that are only at home on a race track (with expensive matching leathers) and wonder why they have accidents or get their licences taken away.....

[bigbob313]

Timbo (or anyone): A loooong time ago; when I wasn't interested in motorized two-wheelers, there was a term associated with guys that rode sport bikes and wore full leathers on city streets; but they were generally pseudo racers. They were called cafe racers. Is that term still used? :rollin:

[timbo]

I've heard of the term, though it seems to be only associated with the 60s. I have my own terms for them, of which "posers" is the only one thats repeatable...

[Gnome]

The term was used a lot in the 60's and 70's no one uses it much now (except me). The term came from Europe where bikers would modify their bikes. Bob the fenders, put on clip on's and a fork brace and go up to the mountains to find some curves to run. They would race from one roadside Cafe to the next. Sometimes against each other,sometimes solo. I think the most modern term would be "street racers" Back then the sport bike like the chopper was mostly home made. I used to drill out my brake roters to simulate the ventilated roters used on full race bikes. Poser was not a term used. Nor was it accurate for a Cafe racer. A lot of these guys were low buck street racers and since the bikes were homemade not bought off a showroom they were usualy good wrenches as well. I think of a poser as some one now who buys a bike that only knows how to write a check for the latest sport bike and matching leathers then rides it like a harley and uses sandpaper to take the nipples off the side of the tire and put some scratches on their knee pads and the low points of the bike!

[saragrace]

I'm a motorcyclist (Honda Shadow VLX; Suzuki GS500) who chose an Atlantic for my daily ride. What I really wanted was a small sport-tourer -- 750cc or below -- with good weather protection and lots of storage. There's nothing else that fits that bill new on the market.

I've put on 700 miles in a little less than three weeks. I just took the Suzuki to school today for the first time since bringing home the atlantic ... and the whole time all I could think was, "I wish I had my scooter..."

-Saragrace